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Nick Gianoutsos

Physical Scientist with the U.S. Geological Survey at the Central Energy Resources Science Center in Denver, CO.

Nick Gianoutsos is a physical scientist with the Central Energy Resources Science Center of the US Geological Survey. He earned his M.S. in computer science from Texas Tech University, and a B.S. in computer science from West Texas A&M University. Before joining the Survey, he worked as a hydrographer on a NOAA research vessel mapping the bathymetry of the ocean floor and served as a park ranger in Denali National Park. His current research interests include water use associated with hydraulic fracturing, pressure regimes in sedimentary basins, geographic information systems, and remote sensing.

Professional Experience

  • Physical Scientist with the Central Energy Resources Science Center of the US Geological Survey

  • Hydrographer at NOAA

  • Park Ranger in Denali National Park

Education and Certifications

  • M.S. in computer science from Texas Tech University

  • B.S. in computer science from West Texas A&M University

Science and Products

link
USGS scientist standing taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Montana

Orphan Wells

The Orphan Wells Project conducts research on orphaned and abandoned oil and gas wells across the nation to better understand the extent of methane emissions and ongoing risks to groundwater contamination. The goal of this research is to provide information that can support prioritizing orphan wells for plugging, and repurposing wells for uses such as new hydrocarbon production, carbon capture and...
By
Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center
link

Orphan Wells

The Orphan Wells Project conducts research on orphaned and abandoned oil and gas wells across the nation to better understand the extent of methane emissions and ongoing risks to groundwater contamination. The goal of this research is to provide information that can support prioritizing orphan wells for plugging, and repurposing wells for uses such as new hydrocarbon production, carbon capture and...
Learn More
link
USGS

Linking orphaned oil & gas wells with groundwater quality

This project will combine the 117,000 orphaned oil and gas wells in the USGS Orphaned Well Dataset with groundwater quality data from the USGS National Water Information System (NWIS) to create a data product that can be used to analyze the interactions between orphaned wells, groundwater, and hazards to the environment.
By
Community for Data Integration (CDI)
link

Linking orphaned oil & gas wells with groundwater quality

This project will combine the 117,000 orphaned oil and gas wells in the USGS Orphaned Well Dataset with groundwater quality data from the USGS National Water Information System (NWIS) to create a data product that can be used to analyze the interactions between orphaned wells, groundwater, and hazards to the environment.
Learn More

Measurements of Water Quality Constituents in Groundwater Within 1 Mile (1.61 km) of Orphaned Wells in the United States

This is a combined dataset from the USGS Orphaned Well Dataset (Grove and Merrill, 2022) and publicly available data from the USGS National Water Information System, NWIS, obtained via the Water Quality Portal using the USGS Python dataretrieval library. This dataset is composed of water quality measurements from groundwater sites located within 1 mile of the locations of unplugged orphaned wells
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Community for Data Integration (CDI)

Aggregated Oil and Natural Gas Drilling and Production History of the United States (ver. 1.1, April 2023)

This data release provides several datasets that provide an overview of oil and gas well history and production of the United States, from 1817 to September 1, 2022. Well history data is aggregated into 1- and 10-mile squares indicating the total number of wells and counts of wells classified as oil, gas, dry, injection, hydraulically fractured, and/or horizontal wells. Well history is also binned
By
Central Energy Resources Science Center

Input forms for 2019 water and proppant assessment of the Eagle Ford Group, Gulf Coast, Texas

The input form provides a record of the complete input values required for the quantitative assessment of water and proppant associated with oil and gas production for the continuous oil and gas resource in a geologically defined Assessment Unit. The same input form template is used for all such assessments. Each USGS water and proppant assessment builds from a USGS petroleum assessment that provi
By
Central Energy Resources Science Center
USGS and NETL scientists measuring methane emissions from an orphan well in Hillman State Park, PA
USGS and NETL scientists measuring methane emissions from an orphan well in Hillman State Park, PA
USGS and NETL scientists measuring methane emissions from an orphan well in Hillman State Park, PA
USGS and NETL scientists measuring methane emissions from an orphan well in Hillman State Park, PA

USGS and NETL scientists measuring methane emissions from an orphan well in Hillman State Park, PA

USGS and NETL scientists measuring methane emissions from an orphan well in Hillman State Park, PA

USGS and NETL scientists measuring methane emissions from an orphan well in Hillman State Park, PA. Photo Credit: Karl Haase

By
Central Energy Resources Science Center
USGS and NETL scientists measuring methane emissions from an orphan well in Hillman State Park, PA

USGS and NETL scientists measuring methane emissions from an orphan well in Hillman State Park, PA

USGS and NETL scientists measuring methane emissions from an orphan well in Hillman State Park, PA

USGS and NETL scientists measuring methane emissions from an orphan well in Hillman State Park, PA. Photo Credit: Karl Haase

By
Central Energy Resources Science Center
USGS scientist standing taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Montana
USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT, 1
USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT, 1
USGS scientist standing taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Montana

USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT, 1

USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT, 1

USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT.  Photo Credit: Nick Gianoutsos

By
Central Energy Resources Science Center
USGS scientist standing taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Montana

USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT, 1

USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT, 1

USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT.  Photo Credit: Nick Gianoutsos

By
Central Energy Resources Science Center
USGS Scientist taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Montana
USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT
USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT
USGS Scientist taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Montana

USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT

USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT

USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT.  Photo Credit: Nick Gianoutsos

By
Central Energy Resources Science Center
USGS Scientist taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Montana

USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT

USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT

USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT.  Photo Credit: Nick Gianoutsos

By
Central Energy Resources Science Center
An orphan well sits open and exposed to the environment in Toole County, MT.
An orphan well sits open and exposed to the environment in Toole County, MT.
An orphan well sits open and exposed to the environment in Toole County, MT.
An orphan well sits open and exposed to the environment in Toole County, MT.

An orphan well sits open and exposed to the environment in Toole County, MT.

An orphan well sits open and exposed to the environment in Toole County, MT.

An orphan well sits open and exposed to the environment in Toole County, MT. Photo credit: Nick Gianoutsos

By
Central Energy Resources Science Center
An orphan well sits open and exposed to the environment in Toole County, MT.

An orphan well sits open and exposed to the environment in Toole County, MT.

An orphan well sits open and exposed to the environment in Toole County, MT.

An orphan well sits open and exposed to the environment in Toole County, MT. Photo credit: Nick Gianoutsos

By
Central Energy Resources Science Center
Filter Total Items: 25

How quickly do oil and gas wells “Water Out”? Quantifying and contrasting water production trends

Water production from petroleum (oil and natural gas) wells is a topic of increasing environmental and economic importance, yet quantification efforts have been limited to date, and patterns between and within petroleum plays are largely unscrutinized. Additionally, classification of reservoirs as “unconventional” (also known as “continuous”) carries scientific and regulatory importance, but in so
Authors
Seth S. Haines, Brian A. Varela, Marilyn Tennyson, Nicholas J. Gianoutsos
By
Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center

Examining water and proppant demand, and produced water production, associated with petroleum resource development in the Eagle Ford Group, Texas

More than 20,000 horizontal wells have been drilled and hydraulically fractured in the Eagle Ford Group since the discovery well in 2008, but a considerable amount of undiscovered petroleum remains. Recently, drilled wells have been hydraulically fractured with an average of nearly 13 million gallons of water and 16 million lb of sand, yielding a million or more gallons of produced water. To infor
Authors
Nicholas J. Gianoutsos, Seth S. Haines, Brian A. Varela, Katherine J. Whidden
By
Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center

Geologic sources and well integrity impact methane emissions from orphaned and abandoned oil and gas wells

The 160-year history of oil and gas drilling in the United States has left a legacy of unplugged orphaned and abandoned wells, some of which are leaking methane and other hazardous chemicals into the environment. The locations of around 120,000 documented orphaned wells are currently known with the number of undocumented orphaned wells possibly ranging towards a million. The bulk of methane emissi
Authors
Nicholas J. Gianoutsos, Karl B. Haase, Justin E. Birdwell
By
Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center

Analysis of the United States documented unplugged orphaned oil and gas well dataset

In coordination with the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) and in response to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) produced a documented unplugged orphaned oil and gas well dataset (called the DOW dataset hereafter) that contains the location and status of these wells nationwide as of 2022. The DOW dataset includes 117,672 wells across 27 states. The data
Authors
Matthew D. Merrill, Claire A. Grove, Nicholas J. Gianoutsos, Philip A. Freeman
By
Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center, Geology, Energy & Minerals Science Center, Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center, Pennsylvania Water Science Center

Geologic models underpinning the 2018 US Geological Survey assessment of hydrocarbon resources in the Eagle Ford Group and associated Cenomanian–Turonian strata, United States Gulf Coast, Texas

The availability of new geologic and production data has greatly increased since 2010, when the US Geological Survey (USGS) last assessed undiscovered, technically recoverable oil and gas resources in the Cenomanian–Turonian (CT) Eagle Ford Group (EFG) across Texas. This new information facilitated an updated assessment of undiscovered continuous oil and gas resources in the Eagle Ford and associa
Authors
Katherine J. Whidden, Janet K. Pitman, Heidi M. Leathers-Miller, Ofori N. Pearson, Nicholas J. Gianoutsos, Scott A. Kinney, Justin E. Birdwell, Stanley T. Paxton, Lauri A. Burke, Russell Dubiel
By
Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center

Assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources in the Upper Cretaceous Austin Chalk and Tokio and Eutaw Formations, U.S. Gulf Coast, 2019

Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated undiscovered, technically recoverable mean resources of 6.9 billion barrels of oil and 41.5 trillion cubic feet of natural gas in conventional and continuous accumulations in the Upper Cretaceous Austin Chalk and Tokio and Eutaw Formations onshore and in State waters of the U.S. Gulf Coast region.
Authors
Janet K. Pitman, Stanley T. Paxton, Scott A. Kinney, Katherine J. Whidden, Seth S. Haines, Brian A. Varela, Tracey J. Mercier, Cheryl A. Woodall, Christopher J. Schenk, Heidi M. Leathers-Miller, Ofori N. Pearson, Lauri A. Burke, Phuong A. Le, Justin E. Birdwell, Nicholas J. Gianoutsos, Katherine L. French, Ronald M. Drake, Thomas M. Finn, Geoffrey S. Ellis, Stephanie B. Gaswirth, Kristen R. Marra, Marilyn E. Tennyson, Chilisa M. Shorten
By
Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center

Assessment of water and proppant quantities associated with petroleum production from the Eagle Ford Group, Gulf Coast, Texas, 2019

Building on a geology-based assessment of undiscovered, technically recoverable petroleum resources in the Eagle Ford Group in south Texas, the U.S. Geological Survey has estimated the required water and proppant demands and formation water production volumes associated with possible future development of these petroleum resources. The results of the water and proppant assessment are presented her
Authors
Nicholas J. Gianoutsos, Seth S. Haines, Brian A. Varela, Katherine J. Whidden, Justin E. Birdwell, Lauri A. Burke, Ronald M. Drake, Thomas M. Finn, Katherine L. French, Karen E. Jenni, Scott A. Kinney, Phuong A. Le, Heidi M. Leathers-Miller, Kristen R. Marra, Tracey J. Mercier, Stanley T. Paxton, Janet K. Pitman, Christopher J. Schenk, Brian N. Shaffer, Chilisa M. Shorten, Marilyn E. Tennyson, Cheryl A. Woodall
By
Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center

U.S. Geological Survey input-data forms for the assessment of the Upper Jurassic Bossier Formation, U.S. Gulf Coast, 2016

IntroductionIn 2016, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) completed an updated assessment of undiscovered, technically recoverable oil and gas resources in the Upper Jurassic Bossier Formation of the onshore U.S. Gulf Coast Province (Paxton and others, 2017). The Bossier Formation was assessed using both the standard continuous (unconventional) and conventional methodologies established by the USGS f
Authors
Stanley T. Paxton, Janet K. Pitman, Scott A. Kinney, Nicholas J. Gianoutsos, Ofori N. Pearson, Katherine J. Whidden, Russell F. Dubiel, Christopher J. Schenk, Lauri A. Burke, Timothy R. Klett, Heidi M. Leathers-Miller, Tracey J. Mercier, Seth S. Haines, Brian A. Varela, Phuong A. Le, Thomas M. Finn, Stephanie B. Gaswirth, Sarah J. Hawkins, Kristen R. Marra, Marilyn E. Tennyson
By
Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center

U.S. Geological Survey input-data forms for the assessment of the Upper Jurassic Haynesville Formation, U.S. Gulf Coast, 2016

IntroductionIn 2016, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) completed an updated assessment of undiscovered, technically recoverable oil and gas resources in the Upper Jurassic Haynesville Formation of the onshore U.S. Gulf Coast Province (Paxton and others, 2017). The Haynesville Formation was assessed using both the standard continuous (unconventional) and conventional methodologies established by th
Authors
Stanley T. Paxton, Janet K. Pitman, Scott A. Kinney, Nicholas J. Gianoutsos, Ofori N. Pearson, Katherine J. Whidden, Russell F. Dubiel, Christopher J. Schenk, Lauri A. Burke, Timothy R. Klett, Heidi M. Leathers-Miller, Tracey J. Mercier, Seth S. Haines, Brian A. Varela, Phuong A. Le, Thomas M. Finn, Stephanie B. Gaswirth, Sarah J. Hawkins, Kristen R. Marra, Marilyn E. Tennyson
By
Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center

Assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources in the Eagle Ford Group and associated Cenomanian–Turonian Strata, U.S. Gulf Coast, Texas, 2018

Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated undiscovered, technically recoverable mean resources of 8.5 billion barrels of oil and 66 trillion cubic feet of gas in continuous accumulations in the Upper Cretaceous Eagle Ford Group and associated Cenomanian–Turonian strata in onshore lands of the U.S. Gulf Coast region, Texas.
Authors
Katherine J. Whidden, Janet K. Pitman, Ofori N. Pearson, Stanley T. Paxton, Scott A. Kinney, Nicholas J. Gianoutsos, Christopher J. Schenk, Heidi M. Leathers-Miller, Justin E. Birdwell, Michael E. Brownfield, Lauri A. Burke, Russell F. Dubiel, Katherine L. French, Stephanie B. Gaswirth, Seth S. Haines, Phuong A. Le, Kristen R. Marra, Tracey J. Mercier, Marilyn E. Tennyson, Cheryl A. Woodall
By
Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center

Correlation of the Eagle Ford Group, Woodbine Group, and equivalent Cenomanian-Turonian Mudstones using regional wireline-log cross sections across the Texas Gulf Coast, U.S.A.

As part of the U.S. Geological Survey’s 2018 hydrocarbon assessment of the Eagle Ford Group and associated Cenomanian-Turonian strata, a series of regional wireline-log cross sections were constructed to examine geologic characteristics of this stratigraphic interval across the Texas Gulf Coast from Mexico to Louisiana. The cross sections were used to help define six continuous assessment units ba
Authors
Nicholas J. Gianoutsos, Katherine J. Whidden, Russell F. Dubiel, William A. Rouse
By
Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center

Correlation of the Tuscaloosa marine shale in Mississippi, Louisiana, and east Texas, U.S.A.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) completed an assessment of undiscovered, technically recoverable unconventional petroleum resources in the Upper Cretaceous marine shale of the Tuscaloosa Group (Tuscaloosa marine shale; TMS) in 2018. As part of the geologic characterization in preparation for the assessment, a series of wireline log cross sections were constructed to illustrate TMS thickness tre
Authors
William A. Rouse, Catherine B. Enomoto, Nicholas J. Gianoutsos
By
Energy Resources Program, Geology, Energy & Minerals Science Center, Central Energy Resources Science Center

Science and Products

link
USGS scientist standing taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Montana

Orphan Wells

The Orphan Wells Project conducts research on orphaned and abandoned oil and gas wells across the nation to better understand the extent of methane emissions and ongoing risks to groundwater contamination. The goal of this research is to provide information that can support prioritizing orphan wells for plugging, and repurposing wells for uses such as new hydrocarbon production, carbon capture and...
By
Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center
link

Orphan Wells

The Orphan Wells Project conducts research on orphaned and abandoned oil and gas wells across the nation to better understand the extent of methane emissions and ongoing risks to groundwater contamination. The goal of this research is to provide information that can support prioritizing orphan wells for plugging, and repurposing wells for uses such as new hydrocarbon production, carbon capture and...
Learn More
link
USGS

Linking orphaned oil & gas wells with groundwater quality

This project will combine the 117,000 orphaned oil and gas wells in the USGS Orphaned Well Dataset with groundwater quality data from the USGS National Water Information System (NWIS) to create a data product that can be used to analyze the interactions between orphaned wells, groundwater, and hazards to the environment.
By
Community for Data Integration (CDI)
link

Linking orphaned oil & gas wells with groundwater quality

This project will combine the 117,000 orphaned oil and gas wells in the USGS Orphaned Well Dataset with groundwater quality data from the USGS National Water Information System (NWIS) to create a data product that can be used to analyze the interactions between orphaned wells, groundwater, and hazards to the environment.
Learn More

Measurements of Water Quality Constituents in Groundwater Within 1 Mile (1.61 km) of Orphaned Wells in the United States

This is a combined dataset from the USGS Orphaned Well Dataset (Grove and Merrill, 2022) and publicly available data from the USGS National Water Information System, NWIS, obtained via the Water Quality Portal using the USGS Python dataretrieval library. This dataset is composed of water quality measurements from groundwater sites located within 1 mile of the locations of unplugged orphaned wells
By
Water Resources Mission Area, Community for Data Integration (CDI)

Aggregated Oil and Natural Gas Drilling and Production History of the United States (ver. 1.1, April 2023)

This data release provides several datasets that provide an overview of oil and gas well history and production of the United States, from 1817 to September 1, 2022. Well history data is aggregated into 1- and 10-mile squares indicating the total number of wells and counts of wells classified as oil, gas, dry, injection, hydraulically fractured, and/or horizontal wells. Well history is also binned
By
Central Energy Resources Science Center

Input forms for 2019 water and proppant assessment of the Eagle Ford Group, Gulf Coast, Texas

The input form provides a record of the complete input values required for the quantitative assessment of water and proppant associated with oil and gas production for the continuous oil and gas resource in a geologically defined Assessment Unit. The same input form template is used for all such assessments. Each USGS water and proppant assessment builds from a USGS petroleum assessment that provi
By
Central Energy Resources Science Center
USGS and NETL scientists measuring methane emissions from an orphan well in Hillman State Park, PA
USGS and NETL scientists measuring methane emissions from an orphan well in Hillman State Park, PA
USGS and NETL scientists measuring methane emissions from an orphan well in Hillman State Park, PA
USGS and NETL scientists measuring methane emissions from an orphan well in Hillman State Park, PA

USGS and NETL scientists measuring methane emissions from an orphan well in Hillman State Park, PA

USGS and NETL scientists measuring methane emissions from an orphan well in Hillman State Park, PA

USGS and NETL scientists measuring methane emissions from an orphan well in Hillman State Park, PA. Photo Credit: Karl Haase

By
Central Energy Resources Science Center
USGS and NETL scientists measuring methane emissions from an orphan well in Hillman State Park, PA

USGS and NETL scientists measuring methane emissions from an orphan well in Hillman State Park, PA

USGS and NETL scientists measuring methane emissions from an orphan well in Hillman State Park, PA

USGS and NETL scientists measuring methane emissions from an orphan well in Hillman State Park, PA. Photo Credit: Karl Haase

By
Central Energy Resources Science Center
USGS scientist standing taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Montana
USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT, 1
USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT, 1
USGS scientist standing taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Montana

USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT, 1

USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT, 1

USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT.  Photo Credit: Nick Gianoutsos

By
Central Energy Resources Science Center
USGS scientist standing taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Montana

USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT, 1

USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT, 1

USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT.  Photo Credit: Nick Gianoutsos

By
Central Energy Resources Science Center
USGS Scientist taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Montana
USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT
USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT
USGS Scientist taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Montana

USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT

USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT

USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT.  Photo Credit: Nick Gianoutsos

By
Central Energy Resources Science Center
USGS Scientist taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Montana

USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT

USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT

USGS scientist Karl Haase taking a methane reading from an orphan well in Toole County, MT.  Photo Credit: Nick Gianoutsos

By
Central Energy Resources Science Center
An orphan well sits open and exposed to the environment in Toole County, MT.
An orphan well sits open and exposed to the environment in Toole County, MT.
An orphan well sits open and exposed to the environment in Toole County, MT.
An orphan well sits open and exposed to the environment in Toole County, MT.

An orphan well sits open and exposed to the environment in Toole County, MT.

An orphan well sits open and exposed to the environment in Toole County, MT.

An orphan well sits open and exposed to the environment in Toole County, MT. Photo credit: Nick Gianoutsos

By
Central Energy Resources Science Center
An orphan well sits open and exposed to the environment in Toole County, MT.

An orphan well sits open and exposed to the environment in Toole County, MT.

An orphan well sits open and exposed to the environment in Toole County, MT.

An orphan well sits open and exposed to the environment in Toole County, MT. Photo credit: Nick Gianoutsos

By
Central Energy Resources Science Center
Filter Total Items: 25

How quickly do oil and gas wells “Water Out”? Quantifying and contrasting water production trends

Water production from petroleum (oil and natural gas) wells is a topic of increasing environmental and economic importance, yet quantification efforts have been limited to date, and patterns between and within petroleum plays are largely unscrutinized. Additionally, classification of reservoirs as “unconventional” (also known as “continuous”) carries scientific and regulatory importance, but in so
Authors
Seth S. Haines, Brian A. Varela, Marilyn Tennyson, Nicholas J. Gianoutsos
By
Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center

Examining water and proppant demand, and produced water production, associated with petroleum resource development in the Eagle Ford Group, Texas

More than 20,000 horizontal wells have been drilled and hydraulically fractured in the Eagle Ford Group since the discovery well in 2008, but a considerable amount of undiscovered petroleum remains. Recently, drilled wells have been hydraulically fractured with an average of nearly 13 million gallons of water and 16 million lb of sand, yielding a million or more gallons of produced water. To infor
Authors
Nicholas J. Gianoutsos, Seth S. Haines, Brian A. Varela, Katherine J. Whidden
By
Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center

Geologic sources and well integrity impact methane emissions from orphaned and abandoned oil and gas wells

The 160-year history of oil and gas drilling in the United States has left a legacy of unplugged orphaned and abandoned wells, some of which are leaking methane and other hazardous chemicals into the environment. The locations of around 120,000 documented orphaned wells are currently known with the number of undocumented orphaned wells possibly ranging towards a million. The bulk of methane emissi
Authors
Nicholas J. Gianoutsos, Karl B. Haase, Justin E. Birdwell
By
Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center

Analysis of the United States documented unplugged orphaned oil and gas well dataset

In coordination with the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) and in response to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) produced a documented unplugged orphaned oil and gas well dataset (called the DOW dataset hereafter) that contains the location and status of these wells nationwide as of 2022. The DOW dataset includes 117,672 wells across 27 states. The data
Authors
Matthew D. Merrill, Claire A. Grove, Nicholas J. Gianoutsos, Philip A. Freeman
By
Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center, Geology, Energy & Minerals Science Center, Geology, Minerals, Energy, and Geophysics Science Center, Pennsylvania Water Science Center

Geologic models underpinning the 2018 US Geological Survey assessment of hydrocarbon resources in the Eagle Ford Group and associated Cenomanian–Turonian strata, United States Gulf Coast, Texas

The availability of new geologic and production data has greatly increased since 2010, when the US Geological Survey (USGS) last assessed undiscovered, technically recoverable oil and gas resources in the Cenomanian–Turonian (CT) Eagle Ford Group (EFG) across Texas. This new information facilitated an updated assessment of undiscovered continuous oil and gas resources in the Eagle Ford and associa
Authors
Katherine J. Whidden, Janet K. Pitman, Heidi M. Leathers-Miller, Ofori N. Pearson, Nicholas J. Gianoutsos, Scott A. Kinney, Justin E. Birdwell, Stanley T. Paxton, Lauri A. Burke, Russell Dubiel
By
Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center

Assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources in the Upper Cretaceous Austin Chalk and Tokio and Eutaw Formations, U.S. Gulf Coast, 2019

Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated undiscovered, technically recoverable mean resources of 6.9 billion barrels of oil and 41.5 trillion cubic feet of natural gas in conventional and continuous accumulations in the Upper Cretaceous Austin Chalk and Tokio and Eutaw Formations onshore and in State waters of the U.S. Gulf Coast region.
Authors
Janet K. Pitman, Stanley T. Paxton, Scott A. Kinney, Katherine J. Whidden, Seth S. Haines, Brian A. Varela, Tracey J. Mercier, Cheryl A. Woodall, Christopher J. Schenk, Heidi M. Leathers-Miller, Ofori N. Pearson, Lauri A. Burke, Phuong A. Le, Justin E. Birdwell, Nicholas J. Gianoutsos, Katherine L. French, Ronald M. Drake, Thomas M. Finn, Geoffrey S. Ellis, Stephanie B. Gaswirth, Kristen R. Marra, Marilyn E. Tennyson, Chilisa M. Shorten
By
Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center

Assessment of water and proppant quantities associated with petroleum production from the Eagle Ford Group, Gulf Coast, Texas, 2019

Building on a geology-based assessment of undiscovered, technically recoverable petroleum resources in the Eagle Ford Group in south Texas, the U.S. Geological Survey has estimated the required water and proppant demands and formation water production volumes associated with possible future development of these petroleum resources. The results of the water and proppant assessment are presented her
Authors
Nicholas J. Gianoutsos, Seth S. Haines, Brian A. Varela, Katherine J. Whidden, Justin E. Birdwell, Lauri A. Burke, Ronald M. Drake, Thomas M. Finn, Katherine L. French, Karen E. Jenni, Scott A. Kinney, Phuong A. Le, Heidi M. Leathers-Miller, Kristen R. Marra, Tracey J. Mercier, Stanley T. Paxton, Janet K. Pitman, Christopher J. Schenk, Brian N. Shaffer, Chilisa M. Shorten, Marilyn E. Tennyson, Cheryl A. Woodall
By
Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center

U.S. Geological Survey input-data forms for the assessment of the Upper Jurassic Bossier Formation, U.S. Gulf Coast, 2016

IntroductionIn 2016, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) completed an updated assessment of undiscovered, technically recoverable oil and gas resources in the Upper Jurassic Bossier Formation of the onshore U.S. Gulf Coast Province (Paxton and others, 2017). The Bossier Formation was assessed using both the standard continuous (unconventional) and conventional methodologies established by the USGS f
Authors
Stanley T. Paxton, Janet K. Pitman, Scott A. Kinney, Nicholas J. Gianoutsos, Ofori N. Pearson, Katherine J. Whidden, Russell F. Dubiel, Christopher J. Schenk, Lauri A. Burke, Timothy R. Klett, Heidi M. Leathers-Miller, Tracey J. Mercier, Seth S. Haines, Brian A. Varela, Phuong A. Le, Thomas M. Finn, Stephanie B. Gaswirth, Sarah J. Hawkins, Kristen R. Marra, Marilyn E. Tennyson
By
Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center

U.S. Geological Survey input-data forms for the assessment of the Upper Jurassic Haynesville Formation, U.S. Gulf Coast, 2016

IntroductionIn 2016, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) completed an updated assessment of undiscovered, technically recoverable oil and gas resources in the Upper Jurassic Haynesville Formation of the onshore U.S. Gulf Coast Province (Paxton and others, 2017). The Haynesville Formation was assessed using both the standard continuous (unconventional) and conventional methodologies established by th
Authors
Stanley T. Paxton, Janet K. Pitman, Scott A. Kinney, Nicholas J. Gianoutsos, Ofori N. Pearson, Katherine J. Whidden, Russell F. Dubiel, Christopher J. Schenk, Lauri A. Burke, Timothy R. Klett, Heidi M. Leathers-Miller, Tracey J. Mercier, Seth S. Haines, Brian A. Varela, Phuong A. Le, Thomas M. Finn, Stephanie B. Gaswirth, Sarah J. Hawkins, Kristen R. Marra, Marilyn E. Tennyson
By
Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center

Assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources in the Eagle Ford Group and associated Cenomanian–Turonian Strata, U.S. Gulf Coast, Texas, 2018

Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated undiscovered, technically recoverable mean resources of 8.5 billion barrels of oil and 66 trillion cubic feet of gas in continuous accumulations in the Upper Cretaceous Eagle Ford Group and associated Cenomanian–Turonian strata in onshore lands of the U.S. Gulf Coast region, Texas.
Authors
Katherine J. Whidden, Janet K. Pitman, Ofori N. Pearson, Stanley T. Paxton, Scott A. Kinney, Nicholas J. Gianoutsos, Christopher J. Schenk, Heidi M. Leathers-Miller, Justin E. Birdwell, Michael E. Brownfield, Lauri A. Burke, Russell F. Dubiel, Katherine L. French, Stephanie B. Gaswirth, Seth S. Haines, Phuong A. Le, Kristen R. Marra, Tracey J. Mercier, Marilyn E. Tennyson, Cheryl A. Woodall
By
Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center

Correlation of the Eagle Ford Group, Woodbine Group, and equivalent Cenomanian-Turonian Mudstones using regional wireline-log cross sections across the Texas Gulf Coast, U.S.A.

As part of the U.S. Geological Survey’s 2018 hydrocarbon assessment of the Eagle Ford Group and associated Cenomanian-Turonian strata, a series of regional wireline-log cross sections were constructed to examine geologic characteristics of this stratigraphic interval across the Texas Gulf Coast from Mexico to Louisiana. The cross sections were used to help define six continuous assessment units ba
Authors
Nicholas J. Gianoutsos, Katherine J. Whidden, Russell F. Dubiel, William A. Rouse
By
Energy Resources Program, Central Energy Resources Science Center

Correlation of the Tuscaloosa marine shale in Mississippi, Louisiana, and east Texas, U.S.A.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) completed an assessment of undiscovered, technically recoverable unconventional petroleum resources in the Upper Cretaceous marine shale of the Tuscaloosa Group (Tuscaloosa marine shale; TMS) in 2018. As part of the geologic characterization in preparation for the assessment, a series of wireline log cross sections were constructed to illustrate TMS thickness tre
Authors
William A. Rouse, Catherine B. Enomoto, Nicholas J. Gianoutsos
By
Energy Resources Program, Geology, Energy & Minerals Science Center, Central Energy Resources Science Center
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